fSCHOOL HOYS 0['T TO MEKT THE MISSIONARY'- “TWO MILES FROM CHINNAMl’O 
 
The Korean Revival 
 
 An A(*count of the Revival in 
 the Korean Churches in 1907 
 
 By 
 
 THE REV. GEORGE IIEBER JONES, D.D., 
 
 AND 
 
 THE m:v. w. Arthur noble 
 
 THE BOARD OF FOREIGN MISSIONS OF THE 
 METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH 
 
 150 FIFTH AVENUE, NEW YORK 
 
 Price, Ten Cents 
 
PRINTED SEPTEMBER, 1910 
 
THE KOREAN REVIVAL 
 
 The present is a time of widespread manifestation of the 
 presence of God in the hearts of men — a manifestation which 
 has appeared in widely separated regions of the world, and 
 in diversified manner, yet always distinguished by at least two 
 characteristics, prayer and the descent of the Holy Spirit. In 
 illustration of this we have the great revival in Wales, the 
 outbreak in Australia, and the overwhelming storm in Korea. 
 
 It is interesting to note the train of events which led up 
 to the Korean revival. During the month of August, 1906, 
 the missionaries at Pyengyang sought a deeper 
 Preparation experience of God’s power in their own lives, and 
 for this purpose meetings for Bible study and prayer 
 ■were held for eight days. During these meetings a special 
 burden for the Korean Church was laid upon them and in 
 response to their suggestion, hundreds of the Korean Chris- 
 tians covenanted to spend one hour a day in prayer for the 
 outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This concert of prayer con- 
 tinued through the autumn and winter, when in the first week 
 of January, 1907, the Holy Spirit was literally poured forth 
 on the people and the fire of his presence spread rapidly through- 
 out the whole city and the surrounding country. This was the 
 outbreak of that revival which can best be likened to a storm. 
 
 Its course may be gathered in an incomplete way from 
 what is told here, but it would be no more possible to write 
 an adequate description of this revival than it would be possible 
 to describe some terrific conflict of the forces of nature as 
 witnessed by some one standing at the storm center. Figures 
 are powerless to express its results, for it is no more possible to 
 convey an idea of what it achieved by mentioning numbers 
 of converts added to the church — though there were thousands 
 of these — nor the number of Christians led out into the freedom 
 
of a new life in God — of whom there were 50,000 — than it 
 would be possible to express the divine majesty in the three 
 dimensions known to mechanical science. 
 
 There were many striking contrasts among the outstanding 
 features of this revival. A spirit of deep-seated and intense 
 antagonism opposed it. In Pyengyang many of the 
 Antagonism church leaders were at first violent in their oppo- 
 sition to it. At another place one of the missionaries 
 announced that if any of his people confessed such sins as hail 
 been revealed in the services at Pyengj'ang, he would promptly 
 expel them from the church. He found, however, when 
 eventually his church was shaken to its very foundations, that 
 to have carried out his threat would have left him without 
 any chm'ch members, while by favoring the revival he had a 
 Spirit-filled, cleansed, and newborn people. At a third place 
 some of the official members of the church were reatly to 
 mob the messengers who came to urge upon them the necessity 
 of seeking complete cleansing at God’s hand, but before the 
 meetings terminated they were only too glad to fall prostrate 
 at the foot of the cross and acknowledge that their antagonism 
 had been against their Lord. 
 
 A second feature of the revival was the great mental dis- 
 tress thi’ough which many of the penitents passed. This can 
 be illustrated by a scene the first Sunday morning 
 Distress in the Methotlist Episcopal Church in Pyengyang. 
 
 of Penitents The church, the largest in Korea, was filled, over 
 
 two thousand being present. One of the missionaries 
 was in charge. After a short sermon the meeting was thrown 
 open, and immediately a young man prominent in church work 
 arose and in tears confessed to a sinful life. When he had 
 finished he flung himself on the floor in agony and cried to 
 God for mercy. Then followed a scene that is beyond descrip- 
 tion. Men all over the church were stricken to the floor, as 
 though hurled there by thunderbolts, where they writhed in 
 their agony, while the house was filled with cries for mercy. 
 So great was the distress in every direction that no one could 
 turn to any particular one to give aid; indeed, the only desire 
 of the penitent ones was the privilege of confessing their sins. 
 
 6 
 
When anyone attempted to talk with them, they seemed 
 almost impatient of human effort to give direction to their 
 thoughts. 
 
 Scenes of this kind were repeated daily. They would 
 come upon the meetings without notice, and men of different 
 temperaments were alike affected. At one meeting, when the 
 opportunity was given the congregation to take part, a man 
 who had been a church member for ten years arose. He had 
 been working for a number of years as an overseer of gangs 
 of coolies employed in the erection of mission buildings, a 
 position which demands force of character and energy. Pre- 
 viously he had mocked at the revival, being highly amused 
 by the idea of himself in the role of a penitent. When he 
 arose to speak on this occasion, he appeared to be so self- 
 possessed and undisturbed that the leader of the meeting felt 
 that his attempt at a confession was either perfunctory or 
 frivolous. This fear was not a groundless one, for certain 
 incidents had ha{)pened which had caused the leaders to keep 
 watch against any tendency to simulate the distress of real 
 penitence. As this man began to speak, the first sin he con- 
 fessed was that of embezzling mission funds. The words had 
 hardly passed his lips when he fell to the floor. Soon he was 
 again on his feet and for a moment continued his confession, 
 when he fell over backward, as though struck in the face by 
 a violent blow. He lay there for some time unconscious. 
 The mission physician, who was present, immediately went 
 to his aid. On returning to the platform he reported that 
 the man showed unmistakable signs of prostration. His pulse 
 was faint and he had become unconscious. A number gathered 
 around the stricken man, in the* hope of comforting him, but 
 on the request of the pastor they retired and left the penitent 
 in the hands of God, Indeed, there was so much distress in 
 every part of the church by this time that there was little 
 reason for caring for this man more than for others in dis- 
 tress, who were so numerous that the task of succoring each 
 one individually was an impossibility. After a while the 
 unconscious man recovered and again attempted to' rise. 
 Several, noticing his desperate struggles, went to his assistance, 
 7 
 
but without avail, for his agony was so great that it was im- 
 possible for him to continue his confession that day. 
 
 At this meeting there occurred an incident which illustrates 
 the terrible character of some of the confessions made and 
 which we relate with great hesitancy. While it is 
 A Terrible true that many of the early converts know little of 
 
 Confession what is required of a Christian, yet the purity of 
 
 the life of the Korean Church as a whole will compare 
 favorably with that of the Christians in any land. No Korean 
 is permitted to hold relation as a church member who has not 
 given up all heathen practices; and among other things par- 
 ticular emphasis is laid upon the observance of the Sabbath. 
 Missionaries of all denominations are unanimous in the opinion 
 that the church in Korea had been, preceding the revival, 
 equal to that in any mission field in the world in the spiritual 
 power and piety of its individual members. It should be 
 remembered that this revival began in the hearts of the mission- 
 aries, among some who seemed to lead the most blameless 
 lives, and in the native church the work also began among 
 the most spiritual preachers and helpers. This will indicate 
 how thorough and complete w^as the work of the Spirit, who 
 hesitated not to uncover the deepest depths of human hearts. 
 The incident about to be related was one of many, and will 
 give a hint, not of the low grade of Christian living in the 
 church, but of the dark life of a people without God, the terrors 
 of Avhich life they have not been able to forget even after a 
 spiritual reformation. 
 
 The meeting one evening had continued with unabated 
 })ower till nearly midnight, and the leader was anxious to 
 close and allow the people to return home, for they Avere thor- 
 oughly exhausted and needed rest. When the time of closing 
 arrived a large number of young men Avere still on their feet 
 and had been waiting some time for an opportunity to confess. 
 Among them Avas a young man not over tAventy years of age. 
 He was laboring under such terrible agony of mind that per- 
 mission was given him to speak. This is the story he told: 
 “Not long ago my mother died, leaving to my care my baljy 
 brother. T did my best for him. I fed him Avith patent foods 
 8 
 
that I was al)le to secure from the Japanese drug store. I 
 cooked up rice into a gruel thinking that he might like that, 
 and sometimes I went to the saloon and bought wine for him, 
 but all the time the child fretted for his mother and cried 
 for hunger. It was impossible to stop his crying. Then I 
 wished he w'ould die.” At this point he wrung his hands 
 again and again, while his face was livid with anguish. Then 
 he continued: “I wanted him to die, and one day I went out 
 of doors and hunted for a block of wood. I picked up an old 
 
 BISHOP HARRIS AND A GROUP OF KOREAN PREACHERS 
 
 wooden pillow and came into the room. I seized the crying 
 child and dragged him into the middle of the room and beat 
 his head till he was dead! dead! dead!” On the instant of 
 the last exclamation the young man fell to the floor, himself 
 as dead, and remained so a long time after the meeting had 
 closed. 
 
 How was this confession received? Like the confessions of 
 many others. It sent a shudder of horror over the congre- 
 gation, and threw many prostrate on their faces in sobs and 
 9 
 
jH-ayors. In this connection another question might well be 
 asked. When the souls of men are loaded with the guilt and 
 woe of awful crimes, where may they go to confess their guilt 
 before God if they are debarred his house? The horror of 
 listening to those confessions will abide as long as memory 
 lasts with those who were compelled to hear. It was often 
 impossible even to look upon the faces cf those making these 
 terrible confessions. The only explanation of it is that it was 
 an exceptional time, one that rarely comes in the history of 
 the church. Confession and contrition which all the instru- 
 ments of torture known to the terrible penal code of Korea 
 would have been utterly impotent to bring about were pro- 
 duced by the power of God’s Spirit. 
 
 Great amazement fell upon all within the city walls. The 
 sobs and groans of the penitents in the churches could be 
 heard for a great distance and the scenes enacted 
 Effect on filled the people with wonder and fear. Many were 
 the City attracted to the meeting, some to make sport, while 
 others, filled with the spirit of enmity, sought to create 
 disturbances. Stones were hurled at the building which came 
 crashing through the glass and fell on the people while at 
 worship. Thefts of shoes occurred. These were the easiest 
 articles to steal, for in Korea, instead of removing their hats, 
 men, when they enter a church, remove their shoes, which 
 are left at the door. 
 
 Probably the most diabolical attempt to break up a meet- 
 ing occurred one night when there was an audience of over 
 two thousand persons, more than half of them 
 Attempt to being women. Among these was a certain woman 
 Start a Panic who was an earnest seeker and had determined to 
 become a Christian. This her husband wished to 
 prevent, and he came to the church on that particular night 
 resolved to find her and take her home. Being unable to 
 discover her among the great crowd present, he deliberately 
 paused at the door on the women’s side of the church and 
 I)egan to yell “Fire, fire, fire !” As the cry came ringing through 
 the church the vast audience of women sprang to their feet 
 in terror, while the men of the congregation, who were sep- 
 10 
 
aratecl from the women by a small lattice screen, also arose 
 in frifjht. Immediately there was a panic. When the terrible 
 rush and struggle was over, nearly a score of women and 
 girls who had been trampled under foot lay on the floor appar- 
 ently dead. Fortunately these fears proved unfounded, and 
 though some were seriously injured, no deaths resulted; but 
 the memory of this diabolical deed, the result of the hatred 
 and callousness of one man, remains in Pyongyang to this day. 
 
 There was some fear that this event would fill the minds 
 of the people with such terror that they could not again be 
 induced to go near the church. But it proved otherwise. 
 The meetings continued with unabated interest, and, most 
 ' remarkable of all, one of the lady missionaries who visited 
 the injured persons the next day found that they were dis- 
 posed in their ignorance to attribute their experience to divine 
 anger and punishment for their failure to become Christians — 
 for all of the injured except one were not Christians — and they 
 assured the missionary that as a result of it they had deter- 
 . mined to become followers of Christ. 
 
 During the course of the revival, thousands of the uncon- 
 verted imited with the church as inquirers; yet this large 
 ingathering belongs to the indirect rather 
 Renewal of than the direct results of the revival. The 
 
 Professing Christians Holy Spirit performed his special work upon 
 the church membership rather than upon the 
 unconverted, and the terrible manifestations of distress and 
 agony were confined largely to the Christians themselves. 
 Now that we regard the visitation from the after point of 
 view, this is not difficult to understand. Among a people 
 like the Koreans there is no definite and clear idea of the 
 true and terrible character of sin, so that when first converted 
 they are not prepared to manifest the deep and awful convic- 
 tion that is found among those who have been taught v/hat 
 sin really is. This fact has led some into believing that the 
 Koreans are incapable of deep feeling. This revival, however, 
 has shown that having once come under the power of personal 
 conviction, and been placed in a position where the Holy Spirit 
 can work on their hearts, they are capable of as overwhelming 
 11 
 
sense of sin as any people on earth. The one cry of the Korean 
 Cluirch was for heart cleansing. 
 
 THE AWAKENING OF THE STUDENTS 
 
 The story of the revival has indicated clearly that it was 
 not confinefl to the meetings held in the churches, but was 
 universal. The power of God rested continuously on the 
 people, so that in their homes, places of business, and else- 
 where the same manifestation appeared. This was particularly 
 true among the students in the mission schools. 
 
 The Methodist and Presbyterian Missions in Korea have 
 always carried on their work in the spirit of codperation. The 
 unity which prevails has found expression in the 
 The Students Pyongyang Union College and Academy, which 
 of Pyongyang with a common plant and union faculty is a success- 
 ful educational institution of over five hundred 
 students. This student body offered splendid material upon 
 which the Spirit of God might work. It was composed of 
 the choicest young men from the churches throughout the 
 north, and it is noteworthy that at the time of the revival 
 every student was a ])rofessing Christian, and its effect on 
 them strikingly illustrates the fact already mentioned that th(‘ 
 revival was directed as a special blessing to the (liristian 
 community itself. And it is also very significant that in 
 cleansing these students, God was reaching a body of young 
 men destined to guide and influence the entire church in 
 north Korea. 
 
 The opening of the second school term began while the 
 revival was in the height of its power, and the students fell 
 under its influence even more readily than had the member- 
 ship in the city churches. During the first week the Spirit 
 of God moved so mightily upon the students that it was not 
 possible for them to direct their thoughts to their studies, 
 and routine work was abandoned. After the first break of 
 the storm had passed, and they were able to get to their books, 
 they would study in quiet interest, but during the day, when 
 an opportunity was given them for prayer, scenes of over- 
 whelming sorrow for their own sins or for the sins of fellow 
 12 
 
students would be repeated. Previous to the opening of the 
 school, some of the resident students in Pyengyang had in 
 the meetings held in the churches gone through all the won- 
 derful experience of confession, followed by peace and assurance. 
 It was desired that all students might share in this, so prayer 
 meetings were held by the Korean members of the school 
 faculty in the office of the principal, beseeching God 
 Prayers that the coming term might be marked by the con- 
 Answered quest of the entire student body. One morning while 
 this prayer meeting was in progress, the two mission- 
 aries in charge of the school — one a Presbyterian and the 
 
 PYEXGYAXG UXIOX SCHOOL 
 
 other a Methodist — knelt together in an adjoining class room 
 and prayed for relief from the burden that had been rolled 
 upon their hearts. Swiftly the answer came. The power of 
 the Spirit fell upon the meeting of the Korean faculty in the 
 office; cries and sobs of anguish filled the room and continued 
 until the peace of God that passeth all understanding filled 
 13 
 
all hearts. The two weeks that followed were dreadful and 
 wonderful. As it was the time of the preliminary examina- 
 tions, the days were spent in wmrk, but the hour of four o’clock 
 in the afternoon was set aside for student prayer meetings 
 which were held without any visible leader; but the Leader 
 was there in all his power and majesty. If men ever dis- 
 covered the terribleness of sin when revealed uncovered in the 
 presence of God, they did in those days. First came the 
 physical distress, penitents beating the floor with hands and 
 with head, and their screams and outcries were as though the 
 demons whose name is legion were tearing them; then followed 
 sobbing confessions of sinful and unclean lives. One general 
 characteristic of these seekers was their conscientiousness. No 
 half work would satisfy them. If any of them allowed him- 
 self to be betrayed into being satisfied with less than complete 
 cleansing, he would soon discover how futile were his attempts, 
 and would be brought low at the foot of the cross, there to 
 remain on his face until God had completed his work. 
 
 The experience of one of the most promising students is 
 illustrative. He early came under the influence of the revival, 
 and after a severe mental struggle of several 
 The Experience days he felt convinced that in spite of it all he 
 of One Student had yet failed to obtain the full pardon of his 
 
 sins. On a certain night he met with three com- 
 rades and together they spent the greater part of the night 
 before God in prayer and confession. Late the next morning 
 he api)eared at the study of the missionary to perform some 
 routine duties expected of him and apologized for being late 
 by explaining the manner of spending the night. The mission- 
 ary asked him whether he had secured the peace he so earnestly 
 sought. He replied in the affirmative, and the missionary, 
 desiring to encounige him, talked on the subject of a life with- 
 out sin. That evening the meeting at the school was one of 
 great spiritual power. The distress and jigony shown by the 
 students ])roduced a scene nevx'r to be forgotten. Tlie slain 
 of the Lord were lying where they had fallen and literally 
 covered the floor. The hour was drawing toward midnight 
 and it was necessary to close the meeting, yet more than 
 14 
 
thirty Ijoys were still standing on their feet, some of whom 
 had been waiting for hours for an opportunity to confess the 
 sin on their bouIs. It seemed hard to send these young men 
 away so heavily burdened, but the hour was late and those 
 in charge brought the meeting to a close. The young man 
 to whom we have referred was noticed to be in tears. One 
 of the lady missionaries went and repeated the question of 
 the morning, “Have you obtained peace through faith?” With 
 a great sob he broke out, “O, no, no, I have no peace.” He 
 then sought a distant corner of the chapel and throwing him- 
 self on the floor wept in an agony of sorrow until in the bitter- 
 ness of his anguish he sent some one to call his missionary 
 friend. When the latter appeared, he cried out, “I lied to 
 you this morning. I wanted you to think that I had obtained 
 that which the others possessed and to think as highly of me 
 as of them. I have no peace of heart. O, what shall I do?” 
 That night he with a number of others again spent the whole 
 night in prayer and confession. God then visited them in 
 . power. When the morning dawned the blessing was theirs, 
 and with hearts filled with gladness and joy they proclaimed 
 their new experience to all whom they met. Cleansed, purified, 
 and empowered of God, the young man immediately 
 Complete Ijecame one of the most potent forces in the revival 
 Cleansing and exerci.sed a strong and helpful influence over his 
 fellow-students. Later he with many others vol- 
 unteered for the Christian ministry, and they are to-day 
 doing splendid service. There were others like him wlio 
 formed a steadying element during the terril)le scenes which 
 followed, for in the midst of the eonfusion, grief, and dismay 
 of their fellow-students, this advance guard were able to 
 testify to the sense of pardon, peace, and joy, and thus help 
 others into a like precious experience. 
 
 Another notal)le characteristic of this revival was the call 
 to the students to a life of interce.ssory prayer on behalf of 
 their comrades. Those students who had already 
 Intercessory received the l^lessing spent hours every day in prayer. 
 Prayer anti some passed whole nights on their faces before 
 
 God. In this fact must be found the explanation 
 
 15 
 
for many of the results which attended the revival. After a 
 confession of terrible guilt on the part of one man, a missionary 
 knelt to intercede for him. As he prayed, the missionary, 
 crushed by the awful weight of the other’s guilt and woe, 
 himself fell prostrate on the floor to agonize before God on 
 behalf of his Korean brother, as though he were suffering in 
 the place of the other, and would die if relief were not granted. 
 It is experiences like these that give us a hint of the true mean- 
 ing of intercessory prayer and help us to understand what 
 Christ suffered in Gethsemane. 
 
 This feature of intercessory prayer became a marked 
 characteristic of the meetings themselves. A number of the 
 Christians as soon as they would enter a meeting would fall 
 on their faces before God and remain throughout the entire 
 service, utterly oblivious to the course of events, but remaining 
 with arms of faith outstretched to God while the tumult of 
 repentance, confession, and grief over sin rolled and surged 
 all about them. Who were these Christians? They were the 
 class leaders, stewards, Sunday school teachers, and trustees 
 of the church. 
 
 These students were in earnest in going to the root of 
 matters and wiping out old scores and personal grudges. At 
 one of the meetings an 
 opportunity was 
 Wiping Out given to all who 
 Old Scores had any ill feeling 
 toward anyone 
 present or who had 
 wronged another in any 
 way to make confession 
 and ask forgiveness. A 
 memorable scene followed. 
 
 The meeting broke into 
 numerous groups of stu- 
 dents weeping in each 
 other’s arms, nor did the 
 members of the faculty escape, for boys who had been unruly or 
 disorderly knelt before them or hung about their necks asking 
 16 
 
pardon for past misdoing. The characteristic faults of students, 
 the little sins that so easily beset the boy at school, the “crib- 
 bing” in examinations, thieving and falsifying, spites and 
 grudges were confessed, and in the act of confessing cleansed 
 out of the soul. As there are over a thousand pupils in the 
 various mission schools in the city alone, and all were alike 
 affected, the importance of this fact will be recognized. 
 
 The revival in the High School continued until every student 
 had felt its power and fully nine tenths had come into a con- 
 scious experience of being born again. The result 
 Results Among on the life of the school was immediate. Private 
 the Students devotions were carried on faithfully night and 
 morning by every student, while two thirds of the 
 entire student body could be found in the prayer room every 
 day. Many of them heard the call to preach, and each Sunday 
 groups of students went through the city and to nearby country 
 villages carrying the gospel message. Many voluntarily made 
 an offering of their service for this work during the summer 
 vacation. Thirty-three of our boys took definite appointments 
 to preach without pay. One student ’^/ho had received per- 
 mission to go home for a few days came back with a shining 
 face. The religious life of his father and mother had been 
 deepened, and an uncle had been converted. The people of 
 his native village had met in the little church to hear him 
 preach every night while he was there, and the cleansing power 
 of the Holy Spirit came upon them with the same manifesta- 
 tion as in the city. Ten persons had given in their names as 
 seekers, and plans for a new church and a girls’ school had 
 been adopted. 
 
 The fruits of the revival were seen among the students in 
 other ways. There were a greater application to study and a 
 marked deference to the wishes of the teachers. 
 Strengthened Discipline became comparatively easy. The roots of 
 Character bitterness and jealousy were removed, and it was 
 not an unusual thing for the boys to begin their 
 ordinary class work, such as a recitation in geometry, by first 
 kneeling in prayer. The revival did for the character of the 
 students what many years of training could not have done. 
 
 17 
 
In addition to the High School, there was another group 
 of young men of even more importance upon whom the revival 
 wrought a marvelous work. These were the students 
 Students for for the ministry. To understand the meaning of 
 the Ministry what took place, it will be necessary to review the 
 situation as regards the native ministry at the time 
 of the revival. 
 
 For many years there had been a wonderful turning of the 
 Korean people toward Christianity, and the increase of con- 
 verts had outdistanced the ability of the missionary authorities 
 at home to supply the necessary workers to care for them. 
 This lack of missionaries compelled the placing of large respon- 
 sibility upon the shoulders of native w'orkers long before they 
 were adequately prepared. It is true the loyalty and devotion 
 of the church in Korea had excited the admiration of all fa- 
 miliar with the facts. The helpers and preachers were diligent 
 in their work and zealous to lead their countrymen to become 
 Christians, but it was still too early in the history of the church 
 for the development of a regular ministry among them, such 
 as we understand by the term. The men engaged in the work 
 were lay workers, numbering in the aggregate several hundreds, 
 
 . and in order to prepare them for their work the missionaries 
 held Bible institutes and training classes from time to time 
 at the mission centers. It was at the great class of over four 
 hundred men held in Pyengyang in December, 1906, just 
 preceding the revival, that the attention of the workers was 
 called to the claim of the Christian ministry upon their lives. 
 For a week the matter waS prayerfully considered by the en- 
 tire class. On the final Sunday an opportunity was given 
 to those who had reached a decision to enroll themselves as 
 volunteers for the ministry. Then, as though God had himself 
 sent out the command, one hundred and seventy- 
 Large Number six Koreans stepped out from the ranks of the 
 of Volunteers believers and consecrated themselves to the work 
 of the Christian ministry. Many of these were 
 among the finest young men in the church. It is doubtful 
 if in any land such a large body of volunteers for the Christian 
 ministry ever enrolled themselves on a single occasion. 
 
 18 
 
When the missionaries came to view this body of stalwart 
 young men, and caught a vision of the task of training and 
 preparing them for their lifework, a feeling of dismay resulted, 
 for none felt equal to the task. And yet the necessity was 
 imperative, for these men were comparatively recent converts 
 from the old life. They personally recognized their need of 
 training and were full of intense desire to make adequate prep- 
 aration, Most of them were willing to pay any price in the 
 way of hardship and self-denial to achieve this. As far as the 
 attitude of the candidates for the ministry was concerned, there 
 was little to be desired. But in Korea our equipment for a work 
 like this both in men and institutions is pitiably inadequate. 
 It takes many tens of thousands of dollars and much ripe 
 scholarship to train students for the ministry in America. As 
 the missionaries confronted their task in Korea, and 
 God’s recognized the immensity of the needs and the poverty 
 Solution of resources, it is little wonder that they were appalled. 
 
 Then came the revival and it proved to be God’s solu- 
 tion of the difficulty. It was in full swing when the class of 
 volunteers for the ministry assembled in Pyengyang City for 
 a month of theological instruction. From the first day the 
 power of God was upon the class and it swept through them 
 until the last man had been cleansed and purified. 
 
 The same fact which has been noted in connection with 
 the experiences of the High School students appeared in 
 connection with the theological students. The best 
 An Earnest men, those who were the most spiritually minded, 
 Seeker were the first to be overwhelmed with the new expe- 
 
 rience, and their distress was not less than that of 
 those not so well instructed in Christian living. The history 
 of one member of the class may be taken as typical of this. 
 He was a sturdy northern man who had been a Christian for 
 ten years. Moreover, even as a heathen before giving his. 
 heart to Christ he had been an earnest seeker after truth. In 
 Korea people of this kind often appear, and are much honored 
 for their piety and sanctity. It is usual for them to resort 
 to some lonely mountain and there live the life of a hermit, 
 giving themselves to fasting and prayer. Following this 
 19 
 
custom, this man spent two years in the mountains, refusing 
 to have intercourse with his fellow men; alone, with little to 
 eat and scarcely clothing enough to keep him from suffering 
 during the severe winters, he spent his time in studying the 
 Confucian classics and bringing his body into subjection. 
 When it was all ended, outwardly he appeared to have ob- 
 tained his wishes, yet deep in his own heart he was conscious 
 of failure. He knew himself to be still the same man that 
 had gone into the wilderness, with personal weaknesses uncox- 
 rected and passions unchanged. The emptiness and futility of 
 such a life grew upon him and filled him with disgust, and 
 abandoning his pretended holiness he sought again the fellow- 
 ship and ways of men. Under the influence of this reaction 
 he went into the army, where he plunged into all the wild 
 excesses of heathen soldiery. 
 
 It was at this time that he came under the influence of 
 Christianity and joined the church. Here his native character 
 asserted itself, for he brought into the church life the same 
 intensity of purpose which had marked him as a hermit and 
 as a soldier. He was soon filling a position of responsibility 
 in church work, and in order to be able to give all the time 
 possible to it, he resigned his post as a petty officer in the 
 army, and, returning to his father’s home, settled down to 
 the life of a Christian farmer. He began house-to-house visita- 
 tion throughout the town and the adjoining villages, telling 
 the story of his own salvation and urging others to seek Christ. 
 As the believers grew in number he conceived the idea of build- 
 ing a church in his native village. A number of neighbors 
 agreed to assist in the matter, and, collecting all they could 
 possibly raise, built a chapel. By the time the rafters were 
 in place, however, their funds ran out and they had no money 
 with which to pay the bills. Their only resource was prayer. 
 Many plans were discussed, but always with the result that 
 the only feasible one seemed to be to pray again. “No,” 
 said the leader, when repeatedly asked regarding the results 
 of his prayers, “there is not a cash.” This continued for 
 some time and the work came to a standstill. The skeleton 
 of the building stood against the village sky-line like a ruin, 
 20 
 
and the heavens seemed deaf to all prayer. One day a meet- 
 ing of all the members was called and after prayer the soldier- 
 farmer solemnly announced to his fellow-laborers 
 Answered His that he proposed to answer his own prayers. 
 Own Prayer “Now,” said he, “there is my ox, a strong, good 
 animal and worth considerable money. It is 
 the only one I have to do the work on my farm, and what 
 I shall do when it is gone I do not know, but God’s house 
 must be finished and the ox must help us to do it. I will sell 
 the animal and thus secure money to complete the building. 
 As for the farm, let us trust God that he will take care of 
 our fields.” He was as good as his word and immediately 
 sold his ox. The church was completed and dedicated. Some 
 weeks later the missionary when visiting the village and going 
 to the fields saw this Korean Christian and his brother harnessed 
 side by side to 
 the plow in the 
 place of the ox, 
 while the aged 
 father of the 
 Christians held 
 the handles and 
 followed the fur- 
 row. 
 
 This was the 
 
 man of whom we now speak, a local preacher in charge of a 
 circuit of twenty-two villages. It was with a Christian life 
 of this kind that he came to the theological class in 
 January, 1907. It would seem that there would be very 
 little work needed in the heart of a man like this, yet he 
 was one of the first to fall under the power of God. His 
 repentance and contrition for sin were terrible to behold. 
 The whole past life before he had found Christ, with its dark 
 record of sin, was confessed, while even more intense was his 
 repentance over faithlessness and disloyalty to Christ after he 
 had taken him as his Saviour. God gave him pardon and 
 peace, and all the fierce powers of his nature were tamed and 
 brought into subjection to the law of Christ. This preacher 
 21 
 
went from the theological class a different and a greater man 
 than he was before he came. 
 
 It was men of such character that passed through this 
 terrible storm. Why God should have selected them is a 
 mystery, and yet their confessions revealed the fact that their 
 need of an experience like this was supreme; while the fact 
 that multitudes of fresh converts were coming under their 
 guidance and upon them fell the duty of leading them in the 
 way of Christ, rendered it the more imperative that they 
 should be cleansed by the purifying power of God. 
 
 As the missionaries listened to the confessions of some of 
 these men, they could hardly credit their ears. Some men in 
 these meetings confessed that there had been times in their 
 lives when in the awful hatred of their hearts they had con- 
 cealed knives in their clothing and followed missionaries for 
 days at a time seeking a chance to murder them. Some who 
 thus confessed were unknown by face to the missionaries 
 whose lives they had sought. Truly it was a revelation of 
 the character and the needs of the people — the 
 Revelations uncovering of Korea’s hidden secret depths. From 
 of Soul Life what came out in confession, it would seem that no 
 people in the world hide away in their lives so 
 many tragedies as the Korean people. It is the sorrows 
 and griefs of life that have molded Korean ideas and sus- 
 ceptibilities. One may visit any village, choose some indi- 
 vidual, and, pulling aside the curtain of his life, find a history 
 hidden away as thrilling as any to be found in fiction. Though 
 this may seem an extreme statement, yet the revelation of 
 soul life which came out in the revival showed currents running * 
 
 so deep and troubled that the statement is justifiable. The 
 scenes of violence and crime, the ruin of individuals and homes, 
 the innumerable cases of oppression and violence which were 
 told, would fill many volumes and can be explained only on i 
 
 the ground of imperfect laws and an astonishing disregard of 
 human life. It was into hearts shadowed by tragedies untold 
 that God sent the power of his Holy Spirit to redeem and 
 save. 
 
 22 
 
SPREAD OF THE REVIVAL 
 
 Long before the special meetings were over in the city of 
 Pyongyang, manifestations of the same remarkable conviction 
 of sin appeared in other localities, so that in a short time the 
 entire church in Korea was ablaze, though in varying degrees. 
 This was brought about in two ways. First, visitors from 
 other sections, coming under the influence of the revival in 
 Pyongyang, on returning to their homes, kindled revival fires 
 there. Second, there was an organized effort to send the 
 stronger men who had experienced the cleansing power in 
 Pyongyang to other churches and localities to carry on revival 
 effort. The results were widespread and lasting. 
 
 One of the first regions to experience this spread of the 
 revival was the North Pyengan Province. The city of Yung- 
 l)yen, the former provincial capital, is the newest 
 At Yungbyen of the mission stations of the Methodist Episcopal 
 Church. It has been regarded as one of the strong- 
 est centers of spirit and fetich worship in Korea, but already 
 the church has made such an impression on the life of the 
 people that it is said devil worship has decreased by one-half, 
 while the income of soothsayers and sorcerers has been greatly 
 reduced. Christians from Pyongyang held services in the city 
 church at Yungbyen, and many, especially among the local 
 preachers and workers, were greatly blessed. 
 
 Not only was this true of the Yungbyen church, but even 
 in a more marked degree the revival benefited the country 
 groups. In the villages and hamlets, without the assistance 
 and guidance of the foreign missionary, native Christians 
 carried on the work with great success. In one of the far 
 northern groups lived a young man who had studied as a 
 student in the Pyongyang Academy, and had there passed 
 through the spiritual fire. His first thought was for his relatives 
 in his northern home, and he hastened back and at once began 
 to tell the people what he had received. The result was a 
 regenerated and spiritual church. Like a flaming evangel he 
 went from group to group in the mountains and valleys of 
 that northern region and everywhere carried the blessing to 
 23 
 
A KOREAN VILLAGE 
 
 others. The whole country was set on fire and some of the 
 results achieved were of a remarkable character. 
 
 The region contained in the American Mining Concession 
 in Xorth Korea is embraced in the Yungbyen District. Here 
 an interesting evangelistic work has been carried on 
 Among among the Korean miners which has enjoyed the 
 the Miners good will of the mining company and has been aided 
 by them in many ways. When this young student 
 from Pyongyang visited the native church at Pukchin, one 
 of the central camps of the mines, his message greatly stirred 
 
up the members. Among these was a young Korean employed 
 in the assay office of the company, and regarded as the most 
 trusted native employee. He became deeply convicted, how- 
 ever, over a crime he had committed during the years 
 Confession previous to his conversion, for he had at different 
 of Theft times stolen small quantities of gold until he had 
 accumulated the equivalent of a considerable sum of 
 money. After joining the church he hid this gold, hoping 
 that he might have the opportunity to make the matter right. 
 His life had become exemplary, but all this time he carried 
 in his heart the secret of his crime. It was at this time that 
 the power of God took hold of him, and convicted him so that 
 he determined to make a full confession of the matter and 
 return the gold. Accordingly, one day he sought the mining 
 officials, and, placing the gold before them, told of his crime 
 and said that while it meant his discharge, disgrace, and punish- 
 ment, he must at all events get right with them and with God. 
 This act produced a profound impression on his employers. 
 The assistant general manager took him by the hand and com- 
 mending the moral courage of the act, told him that they 
 would forgive the crime and would not discharge him. The 
 result was that this trusted employee of the mining concession 
 succeeded in not only straightening out the crookedness of the 
 past, but in showing himself worthy of the increased confidence 
 which his employers were glad to bestow upon him. 
 
 South of the city of Pyongyang is the flourishing town of 
 Yangduk. Here among the hills in the county of Pongsan a 
 number of hamlets and villages have been partially 
 At a Wedding evangelized, and the church which is located at 
 Yangduk is a most promising one. There was a 
 wedding at this church during the time of the revival in Pyong- 
 yang and a Korean pastor went there to perform the ceremony. 
 He was fresh from the revival and filled with the Spirit of 
 God. After the wedding he was invited to preach, and as he 
 delivered the message which God had given him, the Spirit 
 fell upon the crowd and men began to stand up and confess 
 their sins. Great distress was upon them, and the anguish 
 and grief which were among the peculiarities of this revival 
 25 
 
were again manifested. After listening a while the preacher 
 called their attention to the fact that repentance without 
 restitution would be in vain. The crowd had watched at first 
 with a disposition to hoot and laugh at the distress of those 
 under conviction. A change, however, soon came over them. 
 Xo sooner had the penitents heard the suggestion of the preacher 
 that restitution was necessary than some of them arose and 
 sought among those present the people whom they had wronged, 
 and confessing their sins, asked for forgiveness. In some cases 
 they even insisted on paying them immediately the cost of 
 chickens and eggs and others articles which they had purloined. 
 This made a profound impression on all those present, and 
 those who had at first scoffed and jeered were not only silenced 
 but brought under conviction themselves. The visiting pastor 
 had intended to take the evening train back to Pyongyang 
 City, but the people would not let him go; so he remained 
 there and preached that night and the next day, and before 
 he departed, the church was regenerated and cleansed by the 
 fire of God. 
 
 Chungsan is the prefectural city of the large county of the 
 same name and is situated high up among tall peaks, from 
 which you can see in one direction the city of Pyeng- 
 In Chungsan yang, thirty miles away, or in the other direction 
 look far out over the muddy waters of the Yellow 
 Sea. The church is nestled down at the foot of one of the 
 tallest peaks of the mountain range, and from its natural 
 location is a strategic center of our work in that very populous 
 section of the country. Work has been carried on successfully 
 in Chungsan for eight years and the whole county is dotted 
 with Christian chapels. One day the leader of this group of 
 Christians came to Pyongyang and said that he had a strange 
 story to tell. He had not known of the revival in Pyongyang, 
 and as communication between Chungsan and the capital city 
 is difficult and infrequent, the church had not heard of it. 
 He had been carrying on meetings in connection with the 
 special services of the Week of Prayer and things had gone 
 on very satisfactorily until, to his great surprise, they took a 
 strange turn. Men would rise up and confess their sins, he 
 
said, and not content with that would break down in an anguish 
 of grief and sorrow over them. The result was that 
 A Strange a strange new’ life had come into the church in a w’ay 
 New Life so mysterious that the leader was quite puzzled by it 
 and hastened to Pyongyang to report to the missionary 
 and to get his judgment upon it. This instance gives evidence 
 of how the revival seemed to be independent of human agencies 
 and would appear as mysteriously as the falling of dew’. No 
 missionary was present with this church during the days of 
 its revival, and the leader himself w’as a man who was cold 
 and indifferent in his spiritual life, so that he had become a 
 problem, and the missionary in charge had come to regard him 
 as unfitted for the position. The revival here w’as a manifesta- 
 tion of the freedom of the Spirit in going W’here He listed. 
 
 The new year, either according to the Gregorian calendar 
 or the old Korean calendar (for both are observed in Korea 
 and are only al)out one month apart) is observed 
 In Chemulpo as a time of special evangelistic effort. This is one 
 of the results of the ol^servance of the Universal 
 Week of Prayer. Very often the Korean churches w’ill begin 
 with the w’orld-w’ide concert of prayer during the first week in 
 January and renew it at the time of the Korean New Year. 
 Chemulpo is one of the most wide-awake churches in Korea. 
 It has a strong official board, and at the time of the revival 
 was under the leadership of a capable Korean pastor. This 
 church l)egan its usual revival efforts at the Korean New Year, 
 W’hich fell early in our February. The official board w’as 
 aroused to activity, and every afternoon those composing it 
 went out by twos to preach the gospel to their friends 
 Individual and neighbors. Two services were held each day in 
 
 Effort the church, one in the morning and one in the evening. 
 
 During these services the character of sin and its 
 consequences were dwelt upon and at the end of the w’eek the 
 church seemed to be thoroughly aroused. Many of the mem- 
 l:>ers had tearfully confessed their sins and sought forgiveness, 
 and one hundred and ninety new converts had been received 
 as inquirers. The Korean pastor and the official board felt 
 that the meetings had been successful and had accomplished 
 27 
 
their purpose, so that it would be well to close them before the 
 interest had died out. This plan prevailed, though a few who 
 had been especially awakened by the services decided to meet 
 daily for prayer, that God would visit the church in great power. 
 
 Sporadic efforts continued after the revival in the Chemulpo 
 church until about the end of March, when two of the Korean 
 preachers in Pyengyang came to Chemulpo by invi- 
 Antagonism tation. They arrived one night about ten o’clock 
 
 of the Pastor and the church was crowded to receive them. 
 
 Dusty and weary with their long journey, they took 
 time to tell a little of the wonderful work done in the North 
 
 COLLINS boys’ school, CHEMULPO 
 
 and retired to rest. The next day they began their work only 
 to find that an intense spirit of antagonism filled the hearts 
 of the Korean pastor and some of the official board. In spite 
 of this, however, the meeting was marked by the Spirit’s 
 presence, and deep conviction came upon many, leading to 
 repentance and to public confession. The opposition, however, 
 continued through the week and culminated on Sunday night, 
 when a crowd gathered outside the church and, under the 
 28 
 
leadership of some of the members of the official board, threat- 
 ened to use violence against the evangehsts and run them out 
 of town. The disturbers did not attempt to invade the church 
 building, but remained outside, carrying on a noisy demonstra- 
 tion. There is little doubt that if the preachers had attempted 
 to leave the church during the night, violence would have been 
 done them. But finally they dispersed and the next day affairs 
 took a new turn. The pastor and recalcitrant members came 
 to their senses, realizing that they had been misled into opposing 
 the work of the Holy Spirit. From this time on the meetings 
 resembled in power the wonderful scenes vdtnessed in Pyeng- 
 yang itself. 
 
 These meetings at Chemulpo would begin as early as six 
 o’clock in the morning and continue practically without inter- 
 mission until midnight. Sometimes the evangelists 
 Deep would be in the church for twenty-four hours at a 
 
 Earnestness time. Xo long sermons were preached, though there 
 
 were frequent exhortations. There was little singing. 
 The characteristic of the revival was confession, and so deeply 
 in earnest were the people that the hours of the day and night 
 would be spent in this one thing. Member after member 
 would await his opportunity to confess, and thus the hours 
 would fly by with no cessation of the torrent of grief, anguish, 
 and contrition. As a rule those who passed through this 
 experience did not manifest exuberant or noisy joy after it. 
 Pardon and assurance came to the penitents in Chemulpo, as 
 at all other places, with the same certainty that day follows 
 the night, but hearts were filled with a deep and marvelous 
 peace and souls were awed into silence in the presence of God. 
 The joy of cleansing was so deep and abiding, it was not possible 
 to express it in the forms of ordinary human gladness. Con- 
 fession and repentance were accompanied by ready restitution 
 for wrongdoing. A table was placed in the church where 
 those who wished to restore articles unlawfully acquired might 
 do so. This table was soon piled high with stolen goods. 
 It is only fair to say, however, that most of these articles had 
 been acquired before the persons taking them had become 
 Christians. In most cases it was not possible to find the 
 29 
 
owners. Many of these articles were petty in their character, 
 and yet the consciences of the people would not allow them 
 to retain them. 
 
 At Seoul the year opened with an intense longing on the 
 part of the missionaries and Korean Christians alike for a 
 revival. Meetings were held in the churches and for- 
 In Seoul eigners and Koreans were benefited, though the general 
 impression prevailed that the meetings were after the 
 usual style and no special increase of power had come. In 
 the midst of these conditions news of the storm at Pyeng- 
 yang came and stirred all hearts. A general feeling of expect- 
 ancy was created that there would be a visitation from God 
 in the capital city. On invitation from the churches in Seoul, 
 a Korean elder from the Presbyterian Church in Pyengyang 
 came and spent a few days in the metropolitan churches. 
 This was the beginning of an experience of cleansing, which 
 while it continued but a few days and was, therefore, vastly 
 different in degree from that in Pyengyang, yet brought a 
 new life into the hearts of the Christians. The same mani- 
 festations of anguish and grief over sin, great distress in con- 
 fessing, and deep and wonderful power in the life were shown. 
 The pastor of the leading church in Seoul was one of those 
 who came under the power of this revival. He had always 
 lived a correct life, and yet formality and indifference 
 Experience had reduced his service for the Master to a mere 
 
 of a Pastor perfunctory performance of his duties. When the 
 
 elder from Pyengyang came and the pastor saw the 
 terrific character of the revival, he shrank back and hardened 
 his heart against it, determined that he would have no part 
 in opening the way for such a visitation of God among his 
 people. The visitation came, however, and swept over him, 
 but left him with peace of heart gone and a sense of rebellion 
 oppressing him. The missionary in charge of the work was in 
 I’yengyang at this time, but, returning, joined with his people 
 in the meetings. One Wednesday night after a meeting, dur- 
 ing which it seemed that a heavy deep shadow rested upon 
 the people and they were farther away than ever from surrender 
 to God, a group of young men remained after the service 
 30 
 
to talk the matter over with the missionary. It was urged 
 upon them that they should simply surrender themselves to 
 the Holy Spirit to do what he might demand of them. After 
 listening to this appeal, they all knelt in prayer, which soon 
 grew into a terrible soul struggle, followed by personal sur- 
 render as one by one with tears and outcries they poured out 
 their hearts to God and gave themselves to him for a new 
 life. The Korean pastor w^as one of the first to attempt to 
 pray. For a while it seemed as though no prayer would come, 
 when suddenly, with the cry of a man breaking away from 
 captors who were leading him to death, he cried with a voice 
 that rang through the church, “O, Holy Spirit, I surrender 
 to thee. I am willing to walk in any pathway that thou 
 mayest point out, and will resist thee no longer.” It was the 
 moment of victory, and from that instant he was a changed 
 man. He had been associated with the missionary in the 
 most intimate fellowship for a number of years, and at one 
 time had been the missionary’s language teacher. It was 
 during this period he had become a Christian. The day fol- 
 lowing the wonderful night of his new surrender, he sought 
 the missionary and said: “Do you remember the old days, 
 years ago, when I was your language teacher? You trusted 
 me very much, so much so that you put temptation before 
 me. You were a very careless young man in those days and 
 would leave me in charge of your study with money lying 
 about. I never stole any large amount, but once in a while 
 I used to take a cash or two (about one twentieth of a cent) 
 and go out and get tobacco or a drink of wine. I have never 
 told you before, but I want to confess it now and ask your 
 forgiveness. I have tried to reckon up how much I took, and 
 counting interest and everything, I think that fifty sen will 
 cover it So here it is. Please take it.” The missionary 
 took the money, and after speaking words of comfort, asked 
 the privilege of returning the money to the conscience-stricken 
 brother. The latter drew away as though he had been offered 
 a cup of deadly poison. “No, no,” he said, “the Holy Spirit 
 has told me to do this, and I have done it in obedience to him. 
 There is no power on earth to induce me to touch that money.” 
 31 
 

 One night during the meetings which followed, a young 
 man especially oppressed with sin came seeking to get rid of 
 his burden. He said that when he first heard of 
 Had Reviled Christ he had been filled with unutterable hatred 
 the Christ against him. He liked to insult and revile his 
 name. One day he saw a picture of Christ hanging 
 on a wall and he went up and spat upon it. As he spoke these 
 words, a cry of anguish broke from his heart, and he Avent to j 
 
 the floor as if struck by a blow. Here he lay sobbing out his ♦ 
 
 confession till the Christ whom he had reviled came and for- 
 gave him. 
 
 Immediately following the adjournment of the theological 
 class in Pyengyang the workers from the Haiju Circuit re- 
 turned to their homes filled with a zeal for souls and 
 On Haiju a determination to introduce the revival into their ' 
 
 Circuit churches. Such an awakening was sadly needed there, 
 
 as the churches were in a very poor spiritual condition. 
 
 The political disturbances had greatly agitated the people 
 throughout that section and there is little doubt that many 
 of the church members had for a time lost sight of the blessed- 
 ness of the gospel and were seeking for political aid and personal 
 advantage. Into this eiiAuronment the workers came back 
 under a great burden for the church. At Haiju, the chief 
 provincial city, were held meetings and the work was carried 
 on with great vigor. At first there was no response. The 1 
 
 heavens seemed black and the hearts of the workers were I 
 
 leaden. God seemed to have forsaken them, yet it was not ( 
 
 so, for he had already prepared the means by which Haiju was | 
 
 to be conquered. But to understand this we must look at ’ 
 
 another church. j 
 
 Konmi was one of the strongest native churches in the 
 province, but the people shared in the general condition of I 
 
 the circuit and were cold and indifferent at this i 
 
 Experiences time. The preacher in charge of this group had , 
 
 in Konmi gone through the fire at Pyengyang and on his 
 return first sought his mother, confessed his sins to 
 her, and asked her forgiveness. Then, with seven of the > 
 
 church members, he went to the top of the mountain which 
 32 
 
rises above the village and there in prayer and confession 
 they wrestled before God in behalf of the church. The next 
 night, at the service, the conviction for sin was something 
 never before known. ]\Ien and women cried in deep agony 
 of soul, and among those who confessed their sins was an 
 exhorter, the chief man of the church. On the following day 
 he changed his mind concerning the revival, however, and 
 declared that it could not be the work of the Holy Spirit, and 
 if allowed to continue, would lead to the ruin of the church, 
 lie could not conceive of the Holy Spirit leading men to con- 
 fess hatred, abuse, slander, adultery, and murder, and on this 
 account declared himself opposed to it. So he prevented the 
 holding of a meeting that evening. It thus looked dark at 
 Konmi for a time, but after much pleading and prayer on 
 the part of the preacher, the exhorter finally gave a reluctant 
 consent and they were again permitted to meet in the church. 
 '^^dlile the meeting was in progress, suddenly it seemed as 
 though the heavens opened and the Spirit of God descended 
 on the worshipers. The people were overwhelmed, but among 
 those who were affected most strongly was the exhorter. 
 During his attempt to confess his sins he fell to the floor as 
 though struck by a blow. Great alarm fell on the people 
 and they agonized over their sins and pleaded mightily with 
 God for forgiveness and salvation. The leader received pardon 
 and relief, and during the following days was greatly used of 
 God in conducting revival services in other villages. 
 
 It was this story which started the storm at Haiju. As 
 the visiting brothers related it in the Haiju meeting, convic- 
 tion went from heart to heart, and one after another 
 The Blessing rose to make confession only to find it impossible 
 
 at Haiju to continue the story, for they fell one after the 
 
 other to the floor in shame and confusion, pleading 
 with God for mercy. Peace and forgiveness came to every 
 one of them. This continued for a week till nearly every one 
 in the church had confessed and was made clean. Old debts 
 were paid, hatred and enmity were cast out, and in their 
 place came brotherly love and heart union in the bonds of 
 Christian fellowship. Thus for over nionth^ from village to 
 33 
 
4 
 
 \’illage and hamlet to hamlet, the work spread until eighteen 
 of the most prominent churches on the circuit had been cleansed 
 and two thirds of the entire church membership had made 
 public confession and had received forgiveness for their sins. 
 
 There remains but one place more of which to speak. Two 
 young men from Pyengyang spent a week in Kongju with 
 blessed results. This city is the headquarters of the 
 Kongju mission work in south Korea, and the center of a dis- 
 Blessed trict of over a million people with only 16,000 Christians ^ 
 
 among them. At Kongju itself the church, through the 
 defection of the Korean preacher, had iDecome filled with 
 
 THE KEV. WILLIAM A. NOBLE AND OFFICIAL .MEMBEIIS # 
 
 OF A NATIVE CHURCH 
 
 bickerings and strife. They were in sad spiritual need. Under 
 the ministry of the two evangelists, the scenes witnessed in 
 Pyengyang and Chemulpo were repeated in Kongju. Every 
 member of the local church made public confession and restitu- 
 tion; old-time enemies were reconciled and all started in the 
 new and higher life. 
 
 This hasty review of the territory covered by the revival 
 as far as it related to the Methodist Episcopal Church gives » 
 
 a very inadcciuate itiea of the immense amount of gootl that ^ 
 
 34 
 
was accomplished. Out of it were born a new chui'ch and a 
 new ministry in Korea. 
 
 THE DIRECT EFFECTS OF THE REVIVAL 
 
 What have been the permanent results of the revival? In 
 answer several things may be mentioned. 
 
 I 1. The revival has resulted in deepening among the Chris- 
 
 I tians the knowledge of sin and righteousness. The teaching 
 of Christianity on those subjects is new to the 
 Sense of Sin and Koreans, who, while not devoid of the sense of 
 I Righteousness sin and righteousness, have standards different 
 i from those we hold. The revival brought upon 
 
 the heart of the church a deep impression of the exceeding 
 sinfulness of sin and of the everlasting obligation of righteous- 
 ness. This fact was well illustrated by the experience of a 
 servant of one of the missionaries. The man had been a Chris- 
 tian for ten years. He had attended church faithfully, and 
 hacl always given close attention to all tliat was said in the 
 services. During the early part of the revival he took a stand 
 I in opposition. To him the scenes of distress furnished a source 
 
 of amusement. The kitchen where he labored was often made 
 a stage where he amused his companions l)y imitating the 
 revival scenes. He would throw himself on the floor and 
 pretend to beat it with his fists, and amid shouts of laughter 
 go through the physical contortions which were so often wit- 
 nessed in the church. One morning his employer asked him 
 if he was at peace with Cotl. Mumbling a reply, he hastily 
 left the room. At the opening of the meeting the following 
 evening, he took a seat among those sitting at the front of the 
 church, and when an opportunity was given to take part, he 
 sprang to his feet and in terrilile distress confessed the sins 
 of his life. Among other things, he told of the way in which 
 he had often betrayed the confidence of his employer. At last, 
 in utter aliandon, he ran to the platform and crawling on his 
 hands and knees, flung himself at the feet of the missionary 
 who employed him, and liegged forgiveness for all the wrongs 
 that he had committe<l against him. From that moment he 
 was a changed man. The vice of pilfering, against which he 
 35 
 
had struggled so long, now stood out in all its hideous aspects; 
 its power was broken, and he passed into Christian freedom 
 and a life of joy. 
 
 2. Another noteworthy effect of the revival was the cleansing 
 of the individual church member. For many years the church 
 in Pyengyang had been tried by one of its members. 
 Heart A man by the name of Kim was converted during 
 
 Cleansing the early days of missionary work in the north, 
 of Christians standing firm during times of severe persecution and 
 identifying himself with God’s people when to do 
 so was at the risk of life. These facts had endeared him to 
 the hearts of many, but before he became a Christian, he was 
 a victim of strong drink, and periodically he would return to 
 his cups, and for days his wife and family would suffer the 
 untold misery which brutish drunkenness can inflict. After a 
 period of debauchery he would again turn to the church and 
 in tears confess his sins, and begging forgiveness would begin 
 all over again. These lapses continued until it became nec- 
 essary to try him and expel him from the church. When the 
 revival meetings began he took no part in them, though he 
 would often sit back in the rear of the church and watch all 
 that occurred. At last some of those who had received the 
 blessing went to him and urged him to give himself to God 
 for cleansing, lie, in a spirit of mockery, agreed to do so. 
 The next evening when an opportunity for confession was giv(‘U, 
 Kim arose to his feet and rushing to tlie front, called in a loud 
 voice for everyone to look at him. “See,” said he, “I am the 
 worst scoundrel in this city, and you all know it. I have 
 l)een a drunkard for many years, and 1 have been in the habit 
 of beating my wife and of making my home a place of horror. 
 You all know me and know what a fiend I have been,” He 
 threw himself to the floor and with cries and contortions of 
 the body, imitated the scenes he had been watching so long. 
 Everyone knew that he was not sincere, and the scene filled 
 the congregation with the keenest distress. Spontaneously all 
 knelt and lifted their voices in prayer for the heartless, mocking 
 man. A thousand voices arose as the voice of one man and 
 the sound of their ])rayer swept through the church and out 
 36 
 
over the city. “O, God,” they cried, “save this our sinful, 
 mocking brother,” 
 
 Two nights after this incident, Kim was again at church. 
 God had already laid his hands upon him, and when the pastor 
 looked down upon the congregation, he saw him stretched out 
 upon the floor in unmistakable anguish. For a time over- 
 whelming sorrow seemed to threaten to end his life. When 
 he was able to rise to his feet amid paroxysms of grief he 
 pleaded for forgiveness for the mockery of the two nights 
 previous. From that hour his heart was cleansed and the man, 
 who before had been unalile to pass a dramshop without stop- 
 ping to buy a drink, began a new life, and now, after months 
 of testing, he is one of the best examples of clean, victorious 
 living in the church. After his experience of being cleansed, 
 he liecame very earnest in his efforts to save his old associates, 
 and during the next few weeks lirought into the church more 
 seekers than any other member. 
 
 3. The revival resulted in the deepen- 
 ing of the prayer life of the Christian. We 
 have already indicated the place 
 Deepened that prayer took in the inception 
 Prayer Life of the revival. During its prog- 
 ress many of the Christians 
 learned a new secret concerning prayer. 
 
 Probably this can be best illustrated l)y 
 the testimony of one of the missionaries. 
 
 He had always been a man of faith and 
 prayer, and was in no wise different from 
 his colleagues in the sincerity and pur- 
 poseful character of his prayers. Yet as 
 he gave himself utterly to the ministry of 
 intercession, forgetting himself and wrest- 
 ling in prayer with God for others, he 
 came into possession of a new power he 
 had never before knovm. This was also true in the lives of 
 many others. They put red blood in their prayer life. It had 
 always been a precious privilege, but now it became a primary 
 method of work. Prayer became a real business with them — 
 37 
 
the main business of life. They went about it with the same 
 definite purpose that they brought to all their tasks. They 
 prayed for those in need no matter where they were or what 
 might be their condition. 
 
 Every afternoon, at four o’clock, the missionaries at Pyeng- 
 yang gathered for intercessory prayer at the high school. 
 There was no leader anti no singing, but before going to their 
 knees, an opportunity would be given to anyone present to 
 mention any special matter pressing upon the heart. Then 
 all would kneel and each in turn, as the Spirit moved, would 
 voice his petition to God. There was no time hmit; and the 
 minutes would grow into an hour, or even two hours, before 
 they would rise from their knees. The Koreans, too, found 
 this secret and gave themselves up to intercession, a company 
 of them often spending a whole night in prayer for their friends. 
 Even the official boards of some of the churches would meet 
 and spend all night in prayer for the town in which they lived, 
 thus laying emphasis upon their official relationship to the 
 spiritual as well as the temporal activities of their church. 
 The answers received were swift and remarkable, and some 
 of the most notable results of the revival came as the direct 
 answer to intercessoiy prayer. 
 
 One of the brightest and strongest of the young men, after 
 passing through the experience of cleansing, was seen to be 
 in terril:)le mental agony. The missionary inquired into 
 For His it, asking him if he had yet found peace in his own heart. 
 Sister “O, yes,” said he, “yes, yes, I am all right, but look at 
 this,” and he thrust into the hand of the missionary a 
 small piece of paper, upon which was written the single word 
 mi-ee (sister). Choking down his sobs, the young man man- 
 aged to say; “Pray for my sister.” The missionary promised, 
 and united his prayers with that of the brother. Some time 
 after, the missionary asked him about his sister. In answer 
 the young man with radiant face told how he had gone home, 
 eighty li (twenty-seven miles) away, to see his family and talk 
 the matter over, and “Xow,” said he, “my sister is saved, my 
 sister is saved.” 
 
 One of the most remarkable developments of the revival 
 
was that of audible prayer. One Sunday mornino; the mission- 
 ary in charge of the meeting asked the coiigre- 
 United Audible gation to engage in united prayer. Spontaneously, 
 Prayer a murmur of audible prayer arose from a thousand 
 
 lips, gradually growing in volume, until it filled 
 the church. It produced no confusion and their voices united 
 like the notes from some great instrument of music. The 
 scene of a great congregation of a thousand or fifteen hundred 
 people all on their faces before God uniting in audible prayer, 
 was thrilling beyond description, producing an effect greater 
 even than united song. Thus the Korean Church discovered 
 new wonders in prayer anti have now a confidence in the power 
 of this blessed privilege which is of inestimable value to them. 
 
 4. As one becomes familiar with the spirit and ideas that 
 underlie the old life of 
 the Korean 
 Consciousness people, he is 
 of Brotherhood impressed 
 with its cal- 
 lousness. The ancient 
 question, “Am I my 
 brother’s keeper?” would 
 be answered l)y the typical 
 Korean with an emphatic 
 negative. Probably the 
 native family system is 
 responsible for this. Men 
 recognize that they are 
 united by the ties of kin- 
 dred, but the broader ties 
 of humanity are little 
 known. One of the most 
 helpful results was a deep- 
 ening among the Christians 
 of the sense of responsi- 
 bility for the welfare of others. They got a glimpse of the 
 great ('hristian teaching that we are more than our brother’s 
 keeper — we are our brother’s brother. The story of the 
 39 
 
preaclior at Haiju l^rings this out. He was a good man 
 and in his way an effective worker, but he cared much for 
 himself and veiy little for others. He had no passion for 
 souls. He had been in the employ of the mission as a 
 helper for several years, but had always shrunk back when 
 asked to go to any place of difficulty or hardship. During the 
 session of the theological class he was among the first to sur- 
 render to the Spirit of God, and he came out of this experience 
 of confession and sorrow with a deep and lasting sense of peace 
 and a holy passion for souls. After the revival he was appointed 
 to Haiju, where the work was suffering through the failure 
 of the native pastor. He took up the work under special 
 difficulty, but in a short time he had transformed the church. 
 He carried the warmth and earnestness of his new-found 
 experience out into other sections with the result that the 
 whole region was stirred as deeply and regenerated as thor- 
 oughlj" as any district touched by the storm. This thought 
 of the intensifying of the sense of personal responsibility for 
 others might be illustrated by repeated examples from the 
 lives of our preachers and workers. 
 
 5. The revival gave the missionaries an understanding of 
 Korean life such as they had not before possessed. They can 
 now appreciate the Korean Christian more fully 
 A Better and help him more wisely than in the past. Far 
 
 Understanding from being discouraged, the missionary in Korea 
 of Korean Life has come to see in the native Christian moral 
 possibihties of the highest order. The revival 
 lifted the curtain from Korean life and character, and revealed 
 the native man in new anti very dark colors. ^Ye have already 
 indicated the astonishment and consternation with which the 
 missionaries listened to the confessions made. It would seem 
 that such terrible tragedies in ordinary life could not occur 
 without becoming matters of public knowledge and thus being 
 prevented. As a fact, the terrible moral condition revealed 
 was a matter of common knowledge among the Koreans, but 
 it was to them a normal condition and excited little comment. 
 Foreigners are necessarily so separated from the Koreans by 
 the barriers of language and custom that as a rule they get 
 40 
 
v(‘iy little Ijeyond the perimeter of Korean social life and know 
 nothing of what lies within. It is not surprising, therefore, 
 that the confession came as a terrifying revelation. A super- 
 ficial observer listening to what was confessed might think 
 that Korean character is thoroughly degenerate, and that 
 there is no moral base upon which to erect a really worthy 
 ethical life. Most of the writers in recent times w'ho have 
 described Korea have dwelt altogether on this phase, and have 
 thus unconsciously placed the Korean in a wrong light. His 
 confessions when rightly interpreted reveal the fact that there 
 are many other things besides sin in Korean life. Korean 
 passions run very deep. He possesses force, courage, and 
 loyalty with generosity and magnanimity, which need only 
 favorable conditions for development. When we view against 
 the dark background of the old life the brighter colors 
 Moral of his virtues as a Christian, the Korean stands out as 
 Courage much a hero as any man on earth. It was heroic simply 
 to make such confessions. It took moral courage of 
 the' highest type publicly to avow the gross and terrible mistakes 
 of the past and to seek forgiveness of Almighty God and of 
 fellow men. 
 
 G. The revival had an indirect bearing on the maintenance 
 of law and order during a time of great national disturbance. 
 In connection with the al^dication of the emperor in 
 Law and 1907, serious disturbances broke out in Korea which at 
 Order one time threatened to assume large proportions. Dur- 
 ing this time the conduct of the church was most 
 commendable. Both at Seoul and Pyengyang, and throughout 
 the disturbed sections, the Christians exerted their influence 
 on the side of law and order and contributed very largely to 
 keeping the spirit of disorder under control. In the north, no 
 uprising against the government occurred, and this was all the 
 more remarkable, as the people in Pyengyang and the northern 
 provinces are the most excitable and turbulent in the empire. 
 Any just review of the causes which contributed to tranquillity 
 must give a large share of credit to the restraining influence 
 of the churches. Throughout this entire region, both in the 
 north and at Seoul, misguided patriots threatened the lives 
 41 
 
of missionaries and native preachers because their influence 
 was against disorder, but as the result of the counsels and 
 restraining influence of the Christian workers, bloodshed was 
 prevented and order maintained. It will be noted that in the 
 regions where this occurred the revival had first prepared the 
 churches so that they were more ready to stand for law and 
 order. 
 
 7. One of the direct results of the revival is the great 
 missionary campaign now being carried on in Korea. The 
 
 church is thoroughly organized to carry the gospel 
 Personal Work message to one million Koreans one by one. 
 of Natives Individual Christians have personally consecrated 
 
 days of service taken from their business, dui'ing 
 which they visit their neighbors and friends, urging them to 
 accept the Lord. In the early part of this campaign the sum 
 total of all the days of service pledged by the men and women 
 in the Korean churches was equal to the continuous service 
 of one man for over three hundred years. A statement pul> 
 lished in one of the newspapers in the city of Seoul giving the 
 results of this campaign between the months of November, 1901), 
 and May, 1910, says that there has l^een in all probability as 
 the result of these efforts an increase in the church member- 
 ship of over thirty per cent. This would mean that over 
 80,000 converts have been won to Christ during the six months 
 covered. May we not learn from this result that the surest 
 way to reach those that are now out of Christ is to first inspire 
 God’s people with new life and devotion to him and fill them 
 with a practical ideal of personal service? 
 
 8. Few people realize the important position that Korea is 
 destined to occupy in the development of the Asiatic world. 
 
 History has shown that a people may lose their 
 Influence on the national independence without losing their influ- 
 Asiatic World ence on the life of the world. The position 
 occupied l)y Korea as first neighbor to China 
 will make her influence upon that country of the greatest 
 moment. With railroads running from the Yalu to all the 
 large ports in the Japan Sea, Manchuria will find her highway 
 eastward through the Korean peninsula. The capital of Korea 
 42 
 
is nearer to Peking than is Chicago to New York. An American 
 express train could cover the distance between the two capitals 
 in fourteen hours. That means that any overwhelming influ- 
 ence which may obtain in Korea will mightily affect China. 
 As has been shown in what we have said above, the Korean 
 people are perhaps the most religious people of the Far East, 
 and all visitors who have come under the influence of their 
 great Christian congregations have been deeply impressed by 
 them. Already the line of railroad reaching into Manchuria is 
 dotted the whole distance from Fusan to Wiju with Christian 
 communities, and churches have been planted Ijeyond the Yalu 
 in Chinese territory. The great revival which has visited 
 Manchuria is known as the “Korean Revival.” 
 
 A deep impression has also been produced upon the Japanese 
 Church. A number of Japanese were converted in the meetings 
 held in Pyengyang, although they were ignorant of 
 A Japanese the Korean language and the contact was one alto- 
 
 Officer . gether in spirit. The Christians who witnessed the 
 
 effects of the revival on the Koreans were profoundly 
 moved and carried back the news to Japan, where in several 
 instances it resulted in quickening the Japanese Church. An 
 instance in illustration. One night there came into the meeting 
 in Pyengyang a Japanese army officer who appeared to be 
 deeply interested in what was taking place. Wlien the Chris- 
 tians knelt in prayer, he knelt with them, but when they arose 
 he continued prostrate before God. No one present could 
 speak the Japanese language, so it was not possible to com- 
 municate with him. Shortly afterward he arose and left the 
 meeting. The next day he came with the pastor of the Japanese 
 church in Pyengyang to see the missionary, ble told of how 
 in the past he had no belief in the existence of Gocb but in the 
 meeting had been so impressed with what had taken place 
 that he could doubt no longer his being and presence, and 
 there had given his heart to Christ. As he was soon to return 
 to Japan he requested baptism, and the following night a little 
 group of Japanese took their place in the midst of the vast 
 audience of Koreans. At the close of the service this soldier- 
 Christian was baptized into the Christian faith amid the com- 
 43 
 
mon rejoicing of Japanese and Koreans. The officer returned 
 to Japan with his heart filled with the divine passion for souls. 
 He preached the gospel in the garrison city to which he was 
 appointed with such earnestness that the entire community was 
 deeply stirred and many persons brought to Christ. 
 
 This is but typical of the possible influence that Korea may 
 exert upon her neighbors. There can be no doubt that Divine 
 Providence has destined the three empires of the Far East — 
 Japan, China, and Korea — to relations of the most intimate 
 character. The reaction of these nations on each other will 
 necessarily be intense. If, as we firmly believe, it should be 
 Korea’s destiny to have a large part in molding the religious 
 sentiment of this great far eastern group of empires, who can 
 adequately measure the importance of the service that she will 
 perform and the imperative necessity that the Christian Church 
 should hasten to Korea with the help that the infant church 
 in the peninsula needs? 
 
 The growth of the church in Korea furnishes a bright 
 promise of the speedy evangelization of this people. The first 
 converts under the Methodist Episcopal Church were 
 The Outlook reported in 1888 and numbered thirty-eight. In 
 1910, the total following of the church was over 
 50,000 — an increase of more than a thousandfold. It is easy 
 to work out marvelous results with figures in connection with 
 any enterprise, but when one contemplates the numerical 
 growth of the church, the result must be a great strengthening 
 of the faith of the church in the complete success of its mission 
 to the world. In Korea we have a field in which there is 
 promise of the rapid evangelization of the entire nation, and 
 whose very condition constitutes an imperative call to the 
 church to concentrate her effort on the great work of giving 
 a people so ready for it the gospel of Christ. 
 
 As far as human foresight can penetrate the future, there is 
 no reason why the wonderful growth attained should not be 
 maintained and even exceeded. The vital question is: Will 
 the church in America meet the responsibility which this con- 
 dition of affairs imposes upon her? The crux of the missionary 
 question, as far as it relates to Korea, is not here on the field, 
 44 
 
hut is at homo on the threshold of the church in America. 
 No obstacle appears ahead of us to prevent the saving of hun- 
 dreds of thousands of Koreans. It is only a question of whether 
 the church at home will make good the opportunity which has 
 been given her of God — to bestow upon one nation, during 
 this generation, the priceless boon of becoming Christian in 
 its national and individual life. i